Rape case convicted Indian-origin Gurmeet Singh US citizenship revoked

NEW YORK:- Gurmeet Singh, an Indian-origin taxi driver convicted of rape, has been stripped of his U.S. citizenship. He was accused of kidnapping and raping a female passenger at knifepoint in New York in 2011. According to the Department of Justice, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted of the violent assault in 2014.

The Department of Justice has also stated that Singh concealed his criminal past when applying for U.S. citizenship; he obtained citizenship just a few months after the assault.

Following the ruling, Attorney Todd Blanche stated, ‘American citizenship is not a shield for criminals. Gurmit Singh, a rapist of Indian origin, is no longer a U.S. citizen. He concealed incidents of rape and kidnapping during the naturalization process, and a federal court has now revoked his citizenship. Citizenship obtained through fraud cannot protect criminals from facing justice.’

Brett A. Shumate, Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the Department of Justice, said, ‘Singh unlawfully obtained the benefits of U.S. citizenship by concealing heinous criminal acts. The Department will continue to work to protect the integrity of the citizenship process and hold accountable those who defraud our immigration system.’

According to the Department of Justice, Singh entered the United States as a visitor in February 1992 for a temporary period of up to six months. He subsequently remained in the U.S. without authorization for years; eventually, he became a permanent resident in June 2000 after his application for an immigrant visa based on family ties was approved.

In May 2011—just weeks before applying for U.S. citizenship—Singh, who was working as a taxi driver at the time, was transporting a female passenger who had fallen asleep on her way home. When the passenger woke up, she found Singh on top of her, holding a knife to her throat.

Singh threatened the woman, bound her hands and feet, gagged her, blindfolded her, removed her clothes, and raped her. Subsequently, the victim managed to escape from the taxi and sought help from a person on the street at dawn.

Singh had concealed details regarding the offense during the citizenship application process. After obtaining citizenship, he was convicted in New York of first-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping—serious sexual offenses—and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

The August 26 order revoking Singh’s citizenship resulted from a complaint filed by the Department of Justice on February 2. Trial Attorney Christopher Lyerla of the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation and Assistant U.S. Attorney Layaliza Soloveichik of the Eastern District of New York represented the prosecution in this case.